Electrolytic silver cleaner



Jan. 3 SON ELECTROLYTIC SILVER CLEANER Filed April 8, 1955 INVENTOR flow/a 5: 111. 50

BY 81 F ATTORNEY United States Patent Office 2,733,293 Patented Jan. 31, 1956 ELECTROLYTIC SILVER CLEANER Donald E. Mason, Greensboro, N. C., assignor to James David McNairy, Jr., Greensboro, N. C.

Application April 8, 1953, Serial No. 347,524

3 Claims. (Cl. 204-288) This invention relates to cleaning devices for silverware and particularly for small articles of tableware, such as knives, forks, spoons and the like, although not restricted to any particular class of articles.

It is already known that tarnish, stains and other chemical discolorations may be removed electrolytically from silverware by immersing such silverware in water containing an electrolyte, such as ordinary washing soap, together with a strip of an alloy of a metal high in the electrochemical series, such as magnesium. This cleaning action is hastened by allowing the articles of silver ware to rest in contact with the strip which, for convenience, I term an electrode. It is an object of the present invention to provide a novel form of cleaning device of the above character which is of convenient and compact form and capable of being readily introduced into a small shallow receptacle so that the silverware may be cleaned with virtually no manual effort or attention on the part of the user and without the need for any additional preparations or paraphernalia besides soap and water, such as are conveniently at hand in the kitchen. The device is especially suitable for use by the housewife who may place the electrode in the dishpan containing the dishes and silverware to be cleaned so that the device will operate to remove sulphur stains and tarnish from the articles of silverware during the time that the housewife is washing the dishes and thus leave the silver in a bright and shiny condition.

Another object of the invention is to provide a cleaning device of the above character which presents a large surface area to the water, such as is desirable in order to enhance its cleaning action, and which is virtually free of sharp corners and edges that might chip or otherwise damage the dishes when the device is used in the same receptacle with the dishes.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a cleaning device of the above character comprising a plurality of electrodes which may be releasably held in association by means of a clip so as to support an article of silverware at more than one point and also allow the water to circulate completely around the article, thus accelerating the cleaning action.

Other objects and advantages will be apparent from the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment of the invention in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a silver cleaning elec trode;

Figure 2 is a top plan view of a pair of electrodes held in spaced apart association by a spring clip;

Figure 3 is a transverse cross section of an electrode taken on the line 3-3 of Figure 2; and

Figure 4 is a detail view showing a different mode of connecting the spring arms of the clip.

The silverware cleaning device comprises a pair of elongated metal bars constituting electrodes 1 releasably secured together by a spring clip 2. The electrode is made of a magnesium-base alloy, and may be an aluminum-magnesium alloy such as is used in the manufacture of light-weight structural parts, especially for aircraft. The specific composition of the electrode is not a part of the present invention. Each electrode is of generally cylindrical shape and is provided upon its circumference with a series of deep, closely spaced slots In so as to increase the surface area of the electrode.

The two electrodes are releasably held in association by the clip 2 which comprises a pair of flexible metal arms 2a welded together as at 3 at approximately midlength of the arms, and the ends of the arms are spread apart so as to extend in divergent relation. The divergent ends of the arms may be pressed together and inserted in the slots 1a of the electrodes where, upon release, they spring apart and frictionally grip the sides of the slots to retain the clip and electrodes in association and provide an electrical conductor between the two electrodes.

The clip may take other forms than that shown in Figure 2. By way of example, the arms 2a may be securedtogether without the necessity for welding or soldering simply by looping an intermediate portion of one arm around an intermediate portion of the other arm to form the connection indicated at 4 in Figure 4.

In the use of the silverware cleaning device just described the two electrodes 1 are coupled together by the spring clip 2 and placed in a pan or tray of water containing an electrolyte, such as soap. The article of silverware K to be cleaned, such as a table knife, indicated in broken lines in Figure 2, is placed so as to rest upon the two electrodes and to extend generally lengthwise of the pair of arms 2a of the clip. Any discoloration upon the article immediately begins to disappear, first in the vicinity of the points of contact of the article with the electrodes and the metal clip and the area of brightness expands from these points until eventually the entire surface of the article takes on a silvery luster.

While the cleaning action is expedited by supporting the article at two or more points, this is not essential and the clip 2 may be removed and either of the electrodes may be used alone if desired. For example, in the washing of dishes and tableware in the same receptacle, the housewife may place one or more electrodes in the bottom of the dishpan where they come into more or less intimate contact with the silverware, so that during the interval that the chinaware and glassware are being washed, the electrodes will remain continually active in restoring the luster to the silverware.

Because the electrodes are made of cylindrical shape and are provided with a multitude of slots, a large amount of surface of the electrode is exposed to the wash water, and the electrodes also support the article of silverware above the bottom of the dishpan permitting the free circulation of water upon all its sides. The cylindrical shape of the electrodes and the close spacing of the circumferential slots avoids sharp corners and edges such as might be liable to chip the glassware or chinaware that is placed in the dishpan along with the silverware.

The electrode, after repeated use, becomes darkened in color. When this occurs, it may be easily cleaned by contacting it with vinegar.

While I have described a preferred embodiment of the invention, it is to be understood that various changes in construction and design may be made in the device without departing from the spirit of my invention as defined in the following claims.

I claim:

1. A device for electrolytically cleaning silverware comprising two parallel, laterally-spaced elongated metal bars constituting electrodes of a magnesium base alloy each provided with a series of relatively deep and closely spaced circumferential slots and a metal clip extending between said electrodes, said clip comprising a pair of flexible arms connected together intermediate their length References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Mann Dec. 26,

Eaton Jan. 1,

FOREIGN PATENTS Great Britain Dec. 3,

Germany Jan. 30, 

1. A DEVICE FOR ELECTROLYTICALLY CLEANING SILVERWARE COMPRISING TWO PARALLEL, LATERALLY-SPACED ELONGATED METAL BARS CONSTITUTING ELECTRODES OF A MAGNESIUM BASE ALLOY EACH PROVIDED WITH A SERIES OF RELATIVELY DEEP AND CLOSELY SPACED CIRCUMFERENTIAL SLOTS AND A METAL CLIP EXTENDING BETWEEN SAID ELECTRODES, SAID CLIP COMPRISING A PAIR OF FLEX- 